


Get Used to It

by TonySawicki



Category: Dir en grey
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Sickfic, nothin' but fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-27
Updated: 2018-08-27
Packaged: 2019-07-03 04:12:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15811110
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TonySawicki/pseuds/TonySawicki
Summary: He felt like he could get used to it, doing dishes in this kitchen, reminding Kyo to lock his front door.All at once, he was smiling at the thought without meaning to, and had to remind himself that this was a special circumstance; he was just a friend helping out a friend who was sick. It didn’t mean any more than that, much as he might like it to...





	Get Used to It

**Author's Note:**

> I've been sick all week and now am further bedridden because I twisted my ankle, so here is what I deem thematically appropriate: a break from the ongoing in the form of a wee fluffy sickfic!  
> I'm working on the update for the other one too, no worries.

Die rapped his knuckles against the door again and frowned as he was met with no response. He was sure Kyo was home. Besides the fact that there were few other places he was likely to be, Die had even warned him that he was coming. After another moment of hesitation, he tried the doorknob and found it unlocked.

Slowly pushing the door open, Die came into the apartment. “Kyo, hello? It’s me, Die, I’m coming in!

He heard a vague kind of response from down the hall and followed the sound to Kyo’s bedroom. He found his friend curled rather pathetically in his bed, looking even tinier than usual. As Die entered the room, Kyo cracked one eye open to look at him.

“Hey,” Kyo said, his voice rough.

Die leaned against the door frame as he took in the scene before him. There was a box of tissues on Kyo’s nightstand, a dozen already crumpled scattered around him on the bed, along with some orange peels. Kyo looked miserable and childish in the midst of it all. “You shouldn’t leave your door unlocked, you know.”

“I was expecting company,” Kyo said. “I wasn’t about to drag myself out of bed just to let you in.”

“Fair enough,” Die said with a shrug. He came in and sat himself down at the foot of Kyo’s bed. “How’re you feeling?”

“Oh, fuckin’ awesome, that’s why I’m in bed surrounded by snot wads and I sound like I’ve been run over by a bus.”

“Is it that much easier to say all that than just, ‘like shit’?”

“You’re the one asking stupid questions,” Kyo growled, and drove himself into a coughing fit.

“Shh,” Die scolded, lightly patting the covers over Kyo’s feet. He pushed the bag he’d brought with him towards Kyo. “Here. Open this.”

Kyo sat up drinking from the water bottle from his nightstand and scooted against his pillows. “What is it?”

“Goodie bag.”

Kyo raised a suspicious eyebrow and peered into the bag. The first thing he pulled out was a magazine featuring a band Die knew he’d been into lately on the cover. “Where did you _find_ this?”

Die smiled. “Around.”

Keeping the magazine open on his lap, Kyo reached into the bag again, taking out a couple of apples and some miso soup packets. “You didn’t have to bring me shit,” he said, a smile warming his voice.

“I know,” Die said. “But you’re sick and stuck in bed. I know you get restless.”

“I should just be using the time to work.” Kyo looked down at the next items from the bag, a variety of teas.

“You should be relaxing and getting better,” Die corrected him. He nodded towards the teas. “Pick one you like.”

Kyo chewed at his lip, sniffed, and tossed one of the teas to Die.

“I’ll be right back.” Die took the packet and headed down the hall to Kyo’s kitchen. He started the water heating and pulled out a cup, setting it on the counter with the teabag inside while he waited. He took the moment to snoop around a bit, appreciating the details of Kyo’s home.

He had been there before, only a handful of times in all his years of knowing Kyo. It felt almost invasive to be getting to see something as innocuous as his kitchen, the couple of handwritten notes to himself that were stuck to the refrigerator. There were several tea cups in the sink, and Die kept himself busy washing them as he waited for the water to boil.

It felt normal. Despite how infrequently he had visited Kyo’s home in the past, Die felt comfortable there. Maybe just because it was so obviously _Kyo’s_ space. He felt like he could get used to it, doing dishes in this kitchen, reminding Kyo to lock his front door. All at once, he was smiling at the thought without meaning to, and had to shake his head to call his mind back to reality.

He set the last clean cup in the dish drainer to dry, and reminded himself that this was a special circumstance; he was just a friend helping out a friend who was sick. It didn’t mean any more than that, much as he might like it to.

The water boiled, and he poured it into the cup.

The truth was Die was glad to be Kyo’s friend. He wouldn’t trade the opportunity to be here for him, to care for him platonically like this, to make music alongside him and bring his poetry to life—not for anything. He was one of the luckiest people alive to be able to do these things with Kyo. If Kyo never looked back at Die with the feeling with which Die looked at him… Well, it didn’t matter. What he had was more than enough. It wasn’t always easy to remember, but his relationship with Kyo was one of the many things for which Die was grateful.

He swallowed down that continual want for _more_ with Kyo, for freedom to share his whole self, to express everything, to be near— _nearer_ —and carried the tea back to Kyo’s bedroom.

Kyo had finished emptying out the bag, and its contents were strewn across the comforter; a pair of socks, a model of a hedgehog with a microphone (which required assembly), packages of crackers and cough drops… At the moment, he was frowning at the back cover of a small paperback book. He glanced up when Die came in, giving him a quizzical look.

“That’s actually one of my favorite books from my childhood,” Die said, somewhat sheepishly. He set the tea cup on the nightstand. “Careful, it’s hot.”

“Never heard of it,” Kyo murmured, his eyes back on the book.

“It’s really good.” Die started gathering up the used tissues lying around, getting them all into the small trash can from the corner of the room. He left it next to the bed. “I could read you some if you like.”

Kyo glared at him. “What, you think I can’t read?”

“I did see that internet rumor,” Die said, trying not to laugh too blatantly at Kyo’s expense. “But really I just meant I’m pretty good at reading things out loud, and then you wouldn’t have to give it your full attention.”

“Hmph.”

“To be fair, the rumor I saw just said you couldn’t read _kanji_ , specifically.”

Kyo’s glare did not ease up, and if Die had been anyone else, maybe he would have been intimidated. As it was he offered Kyo a shit-eating grin and waited for him to crack.

At length, Kyo snorted and shook his head, muttering something that sounded rather like, “go fuck yourself” before reaching for his tea.

Die took that as an invitation to snatch the paperback up, and cleared his throat as he opened it to the first page. Kyo made no move to stop him when he started reading, and instead just sank back against his pillows and let his eyes go half-closed as he listened.

By the end of the first chapter, Die was pretty sure Kyo was drifting off, and he quietly closed the book and set it aside. He took a moment to look at him lying there, curled in on himself, so much smaller than his stage presence would ever let one believe. He resisted the urge to link his fingers with Kyo’s, or to smooth back his wild hair and press a kiss to his forehead. He busied himself with clearing the bed of everything that had been brought out from his goodie bag, and arranging it all where Kyo could find it easily when he woke.

Just as he was picking up the last item—a tiny plush sloth, small enough to hang on a backpack—Kyo’s hand caught hold of his sleeve and he looked to see his eyes slitted open and watching him.

“Hey,” he croaked, “what happened to the story?”

Die smiled fondly and tucked the little sloth into Kyo’s palm. “You weren’t listening anymore.”

“I was listening.”

Die shook his head. “Shh, get some rest.” He started to go again, but Kyo wasn’t relinquishing his sleeve.

“Die,” Kyo said, his eyes closed. He sounded at least as tired as he looked. “I… don’t want to get you sick. But I don’t want you to leave.”

Die’s heart seemed to trip over itself and he hesitated before nodding, even though Kyo couldn’t see him.

“Could you just stay… until I fall asleep?” Kyo opened his eyes to look at him, and it was utterly unfair. There had never been a thing Die could deny him when faced with those eyes, dark and honest and more intense than any other gaze he could imagine.

“You already fell asleep,” he reminded Kyo gently.

Kyo only pulled a little at Die’s sleeve. “Then stay until I wake up.”

Die swallowed and nodded again, finally climbing carefully back onto the bed. “I’ll stay as long as you need me to,” he said truthfully as Kyo shifted over to make room up next to him.

“Don’t say that,” Kyo said, looking seriously at him before closing his eyes again. “I… Thank you. For coming, for bringing me things…” He settled, nestled close enough that Die was afraid to breathe. “Thank you for taking care of me.”

“I’m happy to do it,” Die said, and somehow Kyo seemed to snuggle even _closer_ to him. He couldn’t quite be sure what was happening. Had he dozed off at some point? Was Kyo on so much cold medicine that he wasn’t in his right mind?

“I could get used to it.”

Die chanced a glance down at Kyo’s face. His eyes were closed and he looked so young, all tucked up against him like that, and so much more peaceful than he was used to seeing him that Die was in physical pain for a minute. “Do,” he whispered.

“When I’m better…” Kyo’s hand fumbled, found Die’s and squeezed it. “Remind me.”

“Hm?”

“To kiss you.”

Die froze, positive he was hearing things. But when he looked back to Kyo’s face, he was peering up at him with sure eyes, no trace of clouded judgment to be seen. Slowly, Die nodded yet again, squeezing Kyo’s hand back. “I’ll do that.”

And when Kyo smiled, Die felt himself heating up so rapidly, he wasn’t entirely sure he hadn’t caught Kyo’s fever after all.


End file.
